Skeet and Mod has downed many Snipe for me.Brushy/weedy fields with a sheet water understory provide close shots.

Open field snipe hunting is a full/full endeavor.Wet pastures are prime areas during migration, but they get up long, and are small, so fxf there. They will circle back over you after the initial climb.

I've heard accounts of three hunting dogs in this area nabbed by gators, but not in the winter while hunting snipe. I don't know if gators actively feed in the winter but I don't want any of my dogs to prove a point one way or the other. The bigger threats where I hunt snipe are water moccasins. I know of one dog, a Brittany, killed and a Lab seriously injured by snakes while hunting snipe in the same area. The Lab that was not killed was later cut up pretty bad by a wild hog. Hogs, snakes, gators...pick your poison.As far as table quality, I consider snipe to be my favorite table bird as far as taste goes, cooked rare to medium rare, especially ones drawn and plucked which leaves a tasty fat layer between skin and meat. No, Geo, they don't taste like liver on a stick. Here's a limit of snipe cleaned by using the melted paraffin method more commonly used on ducks:

As far as table quality, I consider snipe to be my favorite table bird as far as taste goes, cooked rare to medium rare, especially ones drawn and plucked which leaves a tasty fat layer between skin and meat. No, Geo, they don't taste like liver on a stick.

You do me an injustice! In fact I also love snipe, especially picked rather than skinned. I cook'em like doves...Geo

Here's one reason I don't use my dogs snipe hunting. This photo was taken while snipe hunting in February, 2012. Pretty big ricefield lizard.

The universal small birdie choke combo is 1/4-1/2 aka skeet/IC and Modified. With respect to large reptiles they have found 14+ft American Crocodile in the Everglades. That is well into man devouring category so actually your situation could be a whole lot worse. I'm not sure how aggressive such beast is in comparison to saltie or African Nile ones, but I sure as hell would not want to find myself bird hunting or fishing near one.

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